Previews

Driver: Parallel Lines

Driving is obviously key here, but shortly after being introduced to an afro-wearing wise-ass by the name of Slink, TK was put through his paces with a piece... err, heater... ah, you know, that thing that spits "hornets"... what do they call them these days? Oh yeah. A gun. The game has a simple lock-on system, and a free-aiming system that zooms in behind TK's back to let you do precision shooting of tires, windows, helicopters, and various parts of the human anatomy. It's not the smoothest system we've ever seen at this point, but it will get the lead where it needs to go without too much difficulty. Since you're not able to jump (in the preview version at least) and have to be standing in front of someone to apply a physical beatdown (again, in this preview version), the gun is your only resort when blocked by a barrel, crate, or other menacing inanimate object. You're able to fire at specific targets while behind the wheel, too. We put our first weapon to good use in our next few missions and soon earned a slower-firing but more powerful revolver.

In the hours spent with the incomplete package so far, I've spent more time in the car than out of the car. Due to an early story mission that has you raising 1500 smackers to bail your buddy's garage out of its money problems, I've also spent much more time with the always-available loan collection and street-racing gigs than blasting my way through the story, which seems to be building slowly toward bigger and more dangerous jobs. Eventually.

You can expect the garage to play a big part in the final game. Felonies can be cleared from your record (for a fee), and you can effectively jump around the map to other garages and modify cars. The customization options look fun and useful (I laid down a custom teal/black paintjob, tinted windows, and bullet-proof tires on my favorite ride). However, it's a feature that is quickly becoming standard in any game featuring cars of any kind, so it's more of a nice touch than a gameplay revelation.

It seems safe to say that there aren't any major bumps in the road and that Parallel Lines isn't following in the desperate skid marks of Driver number three. The AI definitely needs tightening, as the cops can be incredibly hard to shake but are damn near incapable of actually stopping you. Other small problems aren't really worth mentioning, really. This is good news, but if the game has any incredible standout features planned we weren't able to glimpse them just yet. Just being a technically solid game doesn't cut it in this industry anymore, and it hasn't for a long time. Like everyone else, the kid still has a shot at greatness. We'll see if he makes it later this month.